Me, My Brother, and MG - a Column by Allen Francis

“Silence is a true friend who never betrays,” Confucius once said. There is so much modern science doesn’t know about myasthenia gravis (MG). It must be taxing and frustrating for people with MG to explain the disease and its symptoms to family, friends, and others who may have…

American writer William Arthur Ward is believed to have said, “Feeling gratitude and not expressing it is like wrapping a gift and not giving it.” I’m not grateful enough for my relatively good health. I’m overweight, don’t exercise enough, and use the stress of my freelancer life…

A quote attributed to Siddhartha Gautama, known as the Buddha, says, “You will not be punished for your anger; you will be punished by your anger.” In other words, no matter how much we feed it, anger never has a full belly. The more we feed it, the more we…

Author Jane Austen once wrote, “Those who do not complain are never pitied.” I was a mediocre English major in college. I won’t tell you I adored “Pride and Prejudice,” but I’ve always remembered that gut-wrenching line. To pity someone is to feel sorrow, compassion, and sadness due to their…

My twin brother, Aaron, has always been a fitness nut. When we were teenagers, he routinely invited his girlfriend at the time to come over and exercise with him. Exercise videos on VHS tapes were all the rage back then, so they’d perform intense aerobics in front of the TV…

Inside every person we know is another part of them we don’t know anything about. As adults, we often hide our pain, either out of pride or to spare others from worrying. My twin brother, Aaron, was diagnosed with myasthenia gravis (MG) in 1999. But I didn’t realize until…

My fraternal twin brother, Aaron, who was diagnosed with myasthenia gravis (MG) 25 years ago, underwent surgery last week to correct his crossed eyes, or strabismus, and double vision. I’m glad to report that he’s recuperating at home, happy with the results and doing well. The operation was…

Incessant worrying doesn’t eliminate uncertainty about the future, only the peace of the present. I’m a worrier. I’m not proud of that, but it’s an ingrained personality trait. My twin brother, Aaron, who has myasthenia gravis (MG), is having strabismus surgery soon to correct his crossed eyes. I…

Most people try to live life as best they can in a chaotic world, but they never have the power to do what they really want to do. As the nondisabled brother of a twin with myasthenia gravis (MG), I feel I need to take my responsibilities as an advocate…

Unearned guilt is one of the most useless emotions in the world. Guilt never has a full belly. It feeds eternally upon itself and adds to what’s there. Unearned guilt glues itself to the soul and wearily weighs it down. As the Depeche Mode song “Halo” says, guilt is like…